Chess/Arranging The Board

a b c d e f g h
8a8 black rookb8 black knightc8 black bishopd8 black queene8 black kingf8 black bishopg8 black knighth8 black rook8
7a7 black pawnb7 black pawnc7 black pawnd7 black pawne7 black pawnf7 black pawng7 black pawnh7 black pawn7
6a6 black kingb6 black kingc6 black kingd6 black kinge6 black kingf6 black kingg6 black kingh6 black king6
5a5 black kingb5 black kingc5 black kingd5 black kinge5 black kingf5 black kingg5 black kingh5 black king5
4a4 black kingb4 black kingc4 black kingd4 black kinge4 black kingf4 black kingg4 black kingh4 black king4
3a3 black kingb3 black kingc3 black kingd3 black kinge3 black kingf3 black kingg3 black kingh3 black king3
2a2 white pawnb2 white pawnc2 white pawnd2 white pawne2 white pawnf2 white pawng2 white pawnh2 white pawn2
1a1 white rookb1 white knightc1 white bishopd1 white queene1 white kingf1 white bishopg1 white knighth1 white rook1
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Initial position of the White chess

pieces K-h2,q-d6,r-e1,e8,b-f4,p-h3,g2,d5 black chess pieces k-g8,q-a5,r-f8,r-f7,b-f5,b-g7,p-a6,c4,f7,g6,h7


Before starting the game, it's very important to arrange the board in the right manner.

The 1 - 8 horizontal squares are called "ranks", and the vertical ones are called "files".

Your chess board is an 8×8 board. Place the board in such a manner that the bottom right hand corner on your side is white ("White on the right"). On that white square, place the Rook (known also as the "Castle") and place the other Rook on the bottom left corner. Next to the Rooks, place the Knights, followed by the Bishops.

Wrong placement of the Queens is a common mistake. While arranging these pieces, make sure that the black Queen goes on a black square and the white Queen goes on a white square ("Queen on her own color"). The King then goes on the square next to the Queen. It is very important that you place these two pieces properly. Any game found to be set up incorrectly, i.e., King on its own color, will result in the game being voided and a restart called using the same colors.

Fill the next rank with your eight pawns. You're ready to play!
Playing The Game →